Picking up Weights... and Girls, Apparently

Posted on Fri Feb 24th, 2023 @ 5:37pm by Lieutenant JG Nayisa Wrea & Ensign Kateyo Fenn

Mission: Character Development
Location: Athena's Gym
1131 words - 2.3 OF Standard Post Measure

One of the nice things about the gym was that it was the one place Nayisa didn't feel the need to think. Everyone tended to be in their own worlds, doing their own thing. Listen to a good tune and just have at it. Nayisa quietly hymmed along to her own music as she slid metal plates onto the bar, her tune disappearing into the clanks of machines and rummaging of others. In her head, she did quick math to make sure she had the right amount, and sanity checked that the weight was distributed evenly, before securing them in place.

Now the hard part: finding someone to spot her. As much as she wanted to go solo, she was working on strengthening her leg now that it was fully healed, and attempting heavier weights always made her a little nervous. Removing one of her earbuds, she looked around, trying to gauge who could actually spot her if she failed.

Teyo watched as the silver-haired beauty adjusted the weights and prepared to lift. It seemed like a lot of weight for such a small thing and he was intrigued if she could actually manage it. Why does an intelligence officer need muscles anyway? He thought to himself in amusement. "Let's see what you got Ghost," he called out to her.

Turning her head toward the voice, Nayisa spotted the engineer who helped out in the intel offices. She liked his energy, in a way it matched her own. "Only if you come spot me, muscle man," she poked back with a smile. Ghost... that was a new one. "Unless you can't actually lift 70 kilos and those are just for show." She pointed at his muscular arms.

"They're both," Teyo scoffed as he flexed his arms and gave his right bicep a kiss. "Don't worry, I'm sure you'll get there one day," he added with a little wink. He moved over to her after finishing up on the weights he was using. "We doing this then?"

Nayisa jokingly rolled her eyes as he finished what he was doing. "Nah, we're just gonna stare at the big metal disks," she said sarcastically, giving him a wink. "I'm rebuilding strength in my leg after I broke it before I transferred. I was going to aim for five reps." She gave him a goofy grin, "just don't let it kill me, alright? That would be an embarrassing way to go."

"I once heard about an ensign who managed to override the airlock codes on the docking ring he was fixing, blew himself into space, tools and all. Now that's an embarrassing way to go," Teyo said with a smirk. "Don't worry, I've got your back, it would be a real waste if you snuffed it."

Nayisa couldn't help but laugh as she ducked under the bar. "Ok, yeah, that's worse. Surely 'death by weightlifting' is at least in the top ten, though?" Turning her focus inward, she stood until the bar pressed into the back of her shoulders, and she looked down to position her feet.

"Maybe, I guess we'll find out," Teyo said as he moved into position. He watched as the silver-haired woman did her reps and in truth, it was clear she didn't need him there. He helped her rerack the weights and smiled. "Look at that, you didn't die!" He joked. "You're clearly more adept at weightlifting than practical joking."

Once clear of the bar, Nayisa shifted her weight and gave each leg a little shake. "I dunno, the last two were a little shaky," she admitted. It was true, she felt the familiar burning sensation of her muscles trying to push the weight back up, and she felt her weak leg wobble slightly on the last rep. She made a note to stay at that weight for a while, maybe even drop a couple pounds. "I decided to skip Clowning 101 at the Academy, figured there'd be enough people in the class to sufficiently cover a ship's standard allotment." She gestured to Teyo and gave him a grin. "And hey, I was right!"

"Considering the joke you pulled on Charlie and me the other day, I can see why you quit and stick to weightlifting," he said with a slight roll of his eyes. "And I actually prefer the term menace for myself, I think it suits my rounded personality a tad more than a clown, wouldn't you agree?"

Nayisa chuckled as she grabbed her water bottle from the floor near the rack. "Hey, for an on-the-spot idea, it wasn't bad. And it's not my fault you two were nosey." She paused to take a drink of water. "Remind me again of what you've done to be granted the title of menace?"

"I'm sure you've heard the rumours," he replied, a little too smugly. "Well whatever you have heard, I guarantee that's only the half-truth." He winked at her as he shifted his weight from one leg to the other. "Though if you wanted to hear more, I'm sure I can fill you in, over drinks of course."

"Dangling the answer just out of reach, huh? What a tease," Nayisa chuckled, putting the water bottle back on the floor by the rack. Maybe it was a weakness, or maybe it was her nature, or perhaps even her job rubbing off on her personality, but Nayisa couldn't turn down an invitation to free information. Well, mostly free. It was held captive by the offer to socialize over drinks. "Sure, I hear rumors, but rumors tend to be exaggerated. I like hearing it from the source. When were you thinking of drinks?"

"Now?" Teyo asked, then pulled his eyebrows together. "Actually maybe after a sonic shower, the one in my quarters has been upgraded, you won't believe the pressure."

Without much else to do, Nayisa shrugged. "Sure. I'm going to do one more though. Unless you want to stare at my butt again, have fun with your shower." She gave him a little wink before double checking that the weights were secure.

"It's not as fun solo but I'm sure I'll manage," he said with a cheeky grin. "Don't wear yourself out, I want your A-game tonight. Feel free to watch me walk away." He blew her a kiss, grabbed his stuff and made his way to the exit, slowly.

Nayisa made sure he could see her jokingly roll her eyes at him before setting herself up to lift again. But not before sneaking a glance at the Trill's muscular back, partly hidden by the fabric of his shirt, and chuckling to herself. Flirting was fun, and he had some good energy that she could easily match. The invitation for drinks might end up being fun, too.